How Women in Banking Can Rise to the Top

May 29, 2014

When women see that "both parents are responsible for maintaining homes and families" and "give up on achieving perfection every time ... they will help clear space for greater gender equality at the executive level," writes Jodi Detjen in the article “How Women in Banking Can Rise to the Top,” published by American Banker.

Detjen, who teaches Management and Entrepreneurship in the Sawyer Business School, cites statistics showing that, while women make up 54 percent of the finance and banking industry labor pool, only 23 percent of all senior officers and 11 percent of CFOs are women.

“Significant financial rewards go to those who prioritize face time and hours at work, making it difficult for women to achieve work-life balance. Meanwhile, systemic gender bias often forces women who want to stay in banking and finance to adapt to male-dominated, aggressive cultures. The result? Finance has the largest pay differential of any industry,” writes Detjen.